Ministry of Transportation

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Ministry of Transportation
Deregulation Initiative Smart Regulations at
Work in British Columbia March 16, 2005
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Transportation Act Agenda

• Deregulation Project History and Scope
• New Transportation Act
• Development
• Highlights of Changes
• Whats New with Highways?
• Zoning Bylaw Approvals Streamlined Process

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History Deregulation

• New Era commitment made cut red tape by 1/3 by
  June 2004
• Ministry reviewed all of its legislation,
  regulations and policies
• Ministry cut 41 of its regulatory requirements
  as of June 2004
• Not just the numbers business processes
  improved and public service enhanced

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Regulatory Reductions

• Acts Eliminated Highway, Ministry of
  Transportation and Highways, Build BC, Highway
  Scenic Improvement, Riverbank Protection, Motor
  Carrier, Ferry
• Cuts and Streamlining -- Railway, Industrial
  Roads, Motor Vehicle
• New Transportation, Passenger Transportation,
  Coastal Ferry

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What Led to a New Transportation Act?

• Large number of cuts identified sections no
  longer needed, relevant or were duplicative
• Extreme gaps left over disorganized and in
  conflict in some cases
• Ministry acts no longer needed in government
• One stop shopping option preferred

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Guiding Principles

• Improve business processes and enhance public
  service
• Clear up inconsistencies/ambiguities
• Reflect current ministry mandate
• Make act user friendly
• Harmonize ministry legislation with the Community
  Charterharmonize ministry / local government
  powers
• Minimize impact on existing case law

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Old vs. New

• New powers and tools to carry out current mandate
  enhance public service
• Results based
• One stop shopping

• Outdated
• Prescriptive
• Disorganized
• Incomplete powers
• Discrepancies

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Highlights of Changes

• Harmonizes provincial highway legislation with
  the Community Charter
• Facilitates long-term corridor planning between
  local government and Province
• Clarifies ministers mandate and powers
• Provides clear definitions of highways
• Streamlines highway permitting and closures

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Whats New with Highways?
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New Framework

• Provincial Public Undertakings
• Highways, ferries, improvements, works of public
  utility related to transportation clarification
  of mandate around public works
• Provincial Public Highways
• Rural and arterial highways, s. 35 (2) (f) of the
  Community Charter
• Municipal highways

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Provincial / Municipal Highways

• Legal distinctions now clear between rural,
  arterial and municipal highways
• Mandate for each type of highway reflected in the
  Transportation Act and the Community Charter
• Clear authority for the minister to enter into
  highway-related payment and cost sharing
  agreements with any government or party

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Highway Creation

• Old
• All public streets, roads, ways, trails, lanes,
  bridges, trestles, ferry landings and approaches
  and any other public way
• All roads, other than private roads, are deemed
  to be common and public highways

• New
• Any public way, land or improvement, that becomes
  or has become a highway by any of the following
• Deposit of a subdivision, reference or
  explanatory plan under the Land Title Act
• Public spending
• Common law dedication
• Designations under Land Act
• OIC FSR to highway - 56 (2)
• Other means in regulation

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FSRs - Highways

• New way to create a highway from an FSR and vice
  versa
• Cabinet can now deem a highway discontinued and
  closed, while simultaneously creating an FSR
• Cabinet can now deem an FSR closed, while
  simultaneously creating a highway

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Highway Closure

• New streamlined process for highway closures
  where an alternative highway exists or will be
  provided
• If there is an alternative highway closure can
  occur without advertising over 4 consecutive
  weeks but Gazette publication still required

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Highway Use

• New results based
• A person must not use, occupy or construct /
  deposit anything on a highway, without written
  authorization from the minister, or as otherwise
  authorized by law

• Old
• Minister may authorize, in writing, the use and
  occupation of a portion of a highway for any
  purpose, including a commercial purpose

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Authorizations

• The new act provides a general authorization
  framework for the ministry
• This framework supports emerging directions
  around master agreements and other streamlining
  licensing and permitting measures
• Blanket authorizations by regulations

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New Offence Regime

• Old Prescriptive
• It is an offence to
• Camp
• Make a fire
• Leave a dead animal
• Leave a portion of chains, yokes, harness
• Leave material
• Change level
• Stop natural flow of water
• Construct ditch
• Drag logs or timber
• Dig up highway / remove trees
• Place skids / rails
• Place loading platform, mailbox, or other
  structure
• Throw or deposit filth

• New Results Based
• A person must not use, occupy or construct /
  deposit anything on a highway, or to any land or
  improvement related to a highway, unless
  authorized to do so
• A person must not directly or indirectly
  interfere with an undertaking, or related land or
  improvement

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Zoning Bylaw Approvals
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Zoning Bylaw Approvals

• Ministry has authority to approve local
  government zoning bylaws around controlled access
  highways
• Power ensures local government re-zonings of land
  use around controlled access highways do not
  affect the integrity of provincial highways

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Controlled Areas

• New act continues the concept of a controlled
  area which applies to zoning bylaw approvals
• Controlled Area - land in relation to an
  intersection of a controlled access highway with
  any other highway within an 800 meter radius

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New Zoning Bylaw Approval Options

• Two options for approving zoning bylaws in
  controlled areas
• Section 52 Corridor Agreements (new)
• Status Quo

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S. 52 Corridor Agreements

• S. 52 agreements will exempt local governments
  from having to submit individual zoning bylaws
  for approval
• All bylaws passed by local governments will be in
  effect within a controlled area as long as they
  comply with agreement
• Terms / conditions are not limited

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S. 52 Agreements - Benefits

• Long-term proactive planning between ministry
  local government
• Saves staff time
• Provides certainty for developers
• Eliminates the last in developer problem
  straw that breaks the camels back

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Non-Compliance with S. 52 Corridor Agreements

• Zoning bylaws not in compliance with a Section 52
  Agreement will need to be submitted to the
  Minister for approval - to be legally valid

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Smart Regulations at WorkMarch 16, 2005
Passenger Transportation Act Balancing Public
Interest Objectives With Economic Efficiency
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Passenger Transportation Act

• Overview
• Previous Regulatory Regime Motor Carrier
  Commission
• Core Review and Regulatory Options Examined
• New Passenger Transportation Act
• Achieving the Objectives
• Accomplishments / Looking Ahead

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Transportation Services

• All commercial ground passenger transportation
  service providers, excluding public transit
• Specific sectors
• Taxis and limousines
• Scheduled and charter buses
• Auxiliary transportation services (eg. hotel
  shuttles, other types of courtesy transportation)

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Previous Regulatory Regime

• Outdated Motor Carrier Act and regulations
• Not substantially updated since 1939
• Motor Carrier Commission adjudicated all
  applications

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Challenges With Former Regime

• Cumbersome, expensive and time consuming
• All proposals subjected to high degree of review
  by the Commission
• Minimal enforcement

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Other Influences for Change

• Red Tape Reduction Task Force
• Core Review of the Motor Carrier Commission
• Various options examined for the economic
  regulation of the commercial passenger
  transportation industry
• Safety regulation not to be affected

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Regulatory Options Examined

• Regulatory reform and economic deregulation of
  scheduled and charter buses
• Regulatory reform and economic deregulation of
  taxi and limousine industries
• Other governance models taxi regulation carried
  out by local governments (vs. Province)

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Why Not Eliminate Economic Test for Scheduled
Buses?

• Scheduled services on profitable routes
  cross-subsidize unprofitable routes (rural)
• 1982 deregulation of American bus industry led to
  significant reduction in rural service
• Negative impacts from 1980-85 deregulation of
  British bus industry

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Why Not Eliminate Economic Test for Taxis
Limousines?

• Where taxi deregulation has occurred, the same
  patterns appear increased fares and decreased
  service levels
• 21 of the 25 American cities which deregulated
  taxis in the 1980s have since re-regulated
• 1999 Lanyon study on the taxi industry
  recommended both taxis and limousines remain
  economically regulated

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Objectives of the New Act

• Streamline approval processes
• Reduce regulatory burden
• Maintain safety standards
• Enhance enforcement
• New Passenger Transportation Act cut
  regulatory requirements by 43

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Achieving the Objectives

• Streamline Approval Processes
• Two types of licences
• Special Authorizations (adjudicated) taxis,
  limousines and inter-city (scheduled) buses
• General Authorizations (non-adjudicated) all
  other types of passenger vehicles
• Safety requirements
• Streamlined adjudication

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Achieving the Objectives

• Reduce Regulatory Burden
• General Authorization licensees
• no public need test
• flexibility to change fleet sizes, rates and
  areas of operation
• Inter-city buses no longer regulated for fares,
  schedules and fleet size
• Elimination of redundant regulations

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Achieving the Objectives

• Maintain Safety Standards
• Consistency in requirements
• National Safety Code certificate
• Commercial Vehicle Inspection Program
• Insurance Coverage

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Achieving the Objectives

• Enhance Enforcement
• Vehicle-specific plate registration to reduce
  illegal plate leasing
• More timely investigative responses

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Accomplishments

• Regulatory requirements cut by 43 - with new
  Passenger Transportation Act
• Conversion of licensees to the new regime is
  nearing completion
• New General Authorization licensees operating in
  less regulated environments
• No geographic restrictions for larger vehicles
• Increase or decrease fleet size at will
• Charge competitive rates in response to market
  conditions

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Accomplishments

• Roughly 40 less applications requiring
  adjudicated approvals
• projected 15 reduction in applications from
  tariff / schedule reforms
• projected 25 reduction in applications from
  deregulation of charter-type buses
• For the 25 of non-adjudicated applications
  processing time has decreased from an average of
  83 days per application to about 19 days

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Accomplishments / Looking Ahead

• Initial enforcement strategies completed
• Ongoing discussions with major stakeholders
  regarding fine tuning and additional potential
  reforms